Hu Women Nail Down Meac Title

HAMPTON — The Hampton University Lady Pirates were supposed to hold onto MEAC Preseason Player of the Year Danielle Dawson's cape this season as she flew them to regular-season and tournament titles.

Instead, the Lady Pirates have won this year with different players stepping up at different times to get the job done.

Monday night was no different, as several players came up big for Hampton in the second half, leading the Lady Pirates to a hard-fought 75-66 victory against Florida A&M and their first outright MEAC regular-season championship.

Last year, Hampton shared the regular-season championship with Howard, but by getting the season sweep against Florida A&M (14-11 overall, 13-5 in the MEAC), the Lady Pirates (15-8, 14-3) moved 1 1/2 games ahead of the Rattlerettes.

``We swept Howard and we swept FAMU,'' said senior center Nakia Jones. ``Now we just have to go into the tournament with confidence and play like we've been playing all season.''

Hampton, which will be seeded No. 1 in next week's MEAC Tournament, closes the regular season Saturday at rival Norfolk State.

Jones was one of several players for Hampton who struggled, but came up big when it counted in the second half. Jones shot just 2 of 10 from the field in the game, but blocked a school-record-tying eight shots. She also hit two big free throws with 3:52 left in the game, giving her team a three-point advantage. She then came right back on the other end and made a key block against Florida A&M's Akita Heatly.

``I think it kind of was a key,'' Jones said about her free throws and the blocks. ``It gave us a little bit of intensity and put us back on track. I was struggling to get my shot so I just had to do other things and pick up my hustle out there.''

Freshman guard Bridgit Phillips also struggled to find her shot, making just 6-of-18 from the field, including 4-of-14 from 3-point range. But with her team down 52-48 in the second half, Phillips hit the first of three consecutive 3-pointers, which helped the Lady Pirates take a 69-56 lead with 8:31 to play.

``A lot of times when my shot is off I might get down on myself, but my teammates usually get me to the side and tell me to calm down and stroke it like they know I can stroke it,'' said Phillips, who finished with a team-high 16 points.

Dawson has not lived up to her preseason hype, but it was her eight points, all in the final 7:52, that helped seal the victory.

Like Dawson, junior forward Felica Bryant did all of her scoring in the second half, finishing with 14 points, along with freshman forward Kiandra Poteat.

``When we went in at halftime, I was really down on myself,'' Bryant said. ``My teammates were there to pick me up, telling me they really need me. That really helped me to hear that and it helped me boost myself back up.''

Shantis Lewis led the Rattlerettes with a game-high 18 points followed by Teresa Jenkins, who scored 17.

A fight broke out following the game when both teams converged at midcourt. At least one Florida A&M player was bloodied. The game officials had already left the floor. They have asked to view a tape of the incident.

Since the fight happened after the game, Hampton assistant coach Walter Mebane said he was not sure what action, if any, would be taken by the league.

- Heath A. Smith can be reached at 247-4638 or by e-mail at hsmith@dailypress.com